Vehicle-wheel.



F. A. FROMMANN.

VEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION mu) MAR.10. 1913.

Patented Jan. 21, 1919.

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VEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10- 1913.

Patented Jan. 21,1919.

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F. A. FROMMANN.

VEHICLE'WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED MAR-10, IEJI3.

Patented Jun. 21, 1919.

3 SHEETS QHEET 3 30 'taneously-stiflt'en act as supports for the tiltingly mounted rnANKLIn'A. rnoMMAmr; or CHICAGO, rumors.

VEHICLE-WHEEL.

Specification 01' Letters Patent. Patented J .21 1919 Application filed March 10, 1913. Serial No. 753,322.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANKLIN A. FROM- MANN, a citizen of the United States, resid ing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Vehicle- Wheels; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention such asrwill enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

' My invention relates to vehicle wheels of the class having a tire member floatingly carried by the hub member ofthe wheel. It consists in a novel arrangement of the cushioning elements interposed between the tire and hub members of the wheel, whereby these resilient elements may adapt themselves to the changes in relative centricity of the tire and hub members, so as to distribute the cushioning action over a larger portion of the resilient elements.

'The prime object of my invention is to provide tiltable supports for the cushions interposed between the rim and tire members of a wheel of this class, and to provide cushioning bumpers for limiting the relative tilting of the said supports. Another object is to provide one or more annular ribs upon the tire member of the wheel which will simulthe said tire member and Other objects will apcushioning elements.

- pear from'the accompanymgdrawings, in

Figure 1 is partly in section, invention. a

Fig. 2 is a section throughFig. 1-

a fragmentary side view, of a wheel embodying my Fig. "-3- is a section through an alternative embodiment of my -invention taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 7. Y

Figs. 4 and 7 are fragmentary side views showing alternative embodiments of'my in- VQIItIOII- Fig. 5 is 'a fragmentarysection through the-cushion-carrier' and cushion of Figs. 1 Y

and 4 along a'plane transverse to the'axis of the wheel. m.-

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. ;7 but with the cushioning elements distorted under 7 1 strain. 1 .1

' In the draw1ngs,'the-wheel-of my invention includes a hub member equipped with ,gggitne 11. supporting int mation 2*, a tire ally carrying annular member 3, and side flanges 4% adapted to hold the hub member and the tire-carrying member in lateral .alincment. The side flanges may be secured to the rim 2 of the hub member (as in Fig. 2-) by bolts 5, in which case they have radial sliding engagement with the edges of the tire member 3. Or, the side flanges may be fastened by bolts 6 to the tire member 3 (as in Fig. -3-) and may have lateral engagement with the rim of the hub member of the wheel. In either case thespacing between the side fianges is made substantially equal to the width of the member laterally engaged between the same, so that they will prevent lateral movement of the tire mem- I ber relative to the hub member, while permitting relative radial and circumferential movement of the saidmembers.

In the embodiment of Fig. 1-, the tire member 3 has a plurality of radially out- Ward ribs 7, between which tread blocks 8 are mounted upon the tire member, and also has a pair of annular rib formations 9 extending radially inward from the inner cylindrical surface 10 of the member 3. The annular ribs 9 serve as stiiieners for the tire rim 3 and also as supports for cushioncarriers 11, each of which carriers has a bifurcated lug 12 by means of which it is pivoted upon a bolt 13 extending transversely through the lug 12 and one of the ribs .9. The cushion-carrier 11 preferably consists of a longitudinally arcuate body havinga back 14 and a pair of lateral grooved formations 15, the latter directed radially inward of the wheel and facing each other.

Mounted in the carrier 11 and held therein after the manner customary with rubber cushioning having laterally proiecting base formations, is a resilient or cushioning element16 having laterally projecting portions 17 engagedby. the said grooved formations 15. The cushion 16is of such height radiof th'ewheel as to engage the rim,2 of the hub member ina direction substan-, tially radialof the wheel, the rim-engaging portion'of the cushion beingpreferably divided by transverse channelsI 18,.into a plurality of legs 19 each of. which maybe independently flexed and compressed while Fig. -1'-, the cushion-carriers 11 which are pivotally mounted in annular succession upon the. .stifiening 9 will have, their backs 14 substantially concentric with both the rim 2 and the tire member 3. Upon straining the wheel (as by using it on a loaded vehicle), the rim 2 and the tire member 3 will no longer be concentric with respect to each other-and the resulting strains upon the cushion 16 would be confined largely to one end of the-same if this cushion were rigidly mounted upon one of the said members between which it is interposed. Being tiltably mounted, however, the cushion-carrier 11 will tilt so as to maintain the feet of the pedi'ferous cushion substantially concentric with the member against which they bear. Instead of pivoting the cushion-carriers to the tire member (as in Fig.1-)they'may be pivotally mounted upon the 'hub member '(as in Figs. 6- and "7)',- in which case the opposed grooved formations 15 will be radially outward 'ofthearcuate body 14 of each carrier.

Then when the'strains upon the wheel compress and distort the tips of the cushion as in Fg. 7- the pivotal mounting will upon the wheel, I preferably interpose cushioning bumpers between the ends of the cushion-carrier and the member upon which permit; the cushion-carrier to adjust itself to thefchangesin the relative centricity of the hub member of the wheel and of the tire member floatingly mounted thereon.

To prevent the cushion-carrier from tilting too easily in case of sudden strains thesame is pivotally mounted. These bumpers maybe secured to the member upon which the tilting carriers are mounted, as

in Fig. 6, in which case each bumper 17 'mayengage'the adjacent ends of two of the carriers. Or, the bumpers may also be mounted upon the cushion-carriers, in which case they are preferably formed integral with the cushions, as shown in F gs.

For comparatively narrow wheels, the

cushions maybe arranged in a single annular formation, as in Fig. '3, while for Wheels with "wide *rims I preferably arranged them in aplu'rality of'laterally disposed annular formations, the carriers and cushions in the'laterally adjacent annular series being instaggered' relation to each other." Bv this staggering the cushions, "there'will'be no unsupported portion ofthe tireimember'opposite the gap between the ends'of the cushions, as the overlapping due to their staggered relation will distribute i the supporting over the entire circumference of the wheel.

j .Wh'il'e'I have spoken'of the pivoting lug on the cushion-carrier as bifurcated and as mounted upon 'a'rib or one of the other wheelzmemb'er's, I do not wish to be limited to thls arrangementl Thus, the bifurcation might be upon the hub member of the wheel rim and movable circumferentially an'd'ra dially with respectthereto, and circumferentially elongated cushion members interposed betweenthe rim and tiremembers, pivotally mounted between their ends upon one of said members and frictionally engaging the other of said members, andyieldingisupports interposed between the ends ofthe cushion members and the member. upon which they are mounted.

2. In a wheel, a hub, a rim' member rigid therewith; a tire me mber movable radially and circumferentially with respect to. the

ri'm member, one of the said n'e mbe'is'being equipped upon the face opposed tot'he other member with an annularly disposed web,

and a plurality ofcushioning elements each pivoted intermediate its ends upon the said web and each presenting at itsends portions in frictional engagement with the-"opposed faces of both of the said members. I

In a Wheel a hub, a rim member rigid therewith; a tire member movable radially and circumferential'ly with respect to' the rim member,one of the sai'd'membersbeing member with an annularly disposed-web; a plurality of cushion-carriers pivotally mounted upon the'said web, a'n'd'a "cushion fast upon, each of'the said carriers, the's'aid cushion equipped With a plurality of legs frictionally engaging at least one of the said members," some of said legs-disposed a't'op posite SlClES of the pivotal mountingof the said carrier. r

, equipped upon the face opposed to the other 4. In a wheel, a hub, ac-rimmember rigid therewith; v a tire membermovable radially and circumferentially with respect to "the rim member, a plurality of pivots carried by one of the said members and disposed parallel to the axis of the wheel, an elon-" gated cush on-carrier mounted intermediate of its ends uponeach ofthe said pivotsLand a cushlon fast upon'eachof the'said carriers and frictionally engaging the other of the said members.

5. In a wheel, a hub, rim member rigid therewith; a tire member movable radially and clrcumferentially with respect to 'the rim member, a plurality of pivots carried ibers and disp'osed by one of the said me parallel to the axis o'fith'- watt 1, elemgated. cushion-carrier mounted intermediate of its ends upon each of the said pivots, and a cushion fast upon each of the said carriers and having portions frictionally engaging each of the said members respectively.

6. In a Wheel, a hub, a rim member rigid therewith; a tire member movable radially and circumferentially with respect to the rim member, one of the said members being equipped upon the face opposed to the other member with an annularly disposed Web; and a plurality of cushioning elements tiltingly mounted upon the said Web and frictionally engaging the last named member; and bumper formations associated With the member equipped with the said Web and with each of the cushioning elements, for limiting the tilting of the latter.

7. In a Wheel, a hub, a rim member rigid therewith; a tire member movable radially and circumferentially with respect to the rim member, a plurality of pivots carried by one of the said members and disposed parallel to the axis of the wheel, a cushioncarrier mounted upon each of the said pivots, and a cushion carried by each of the said carriers and having portions frictionally engaging each of the said members re spectively, whereby the tilting of the cushion-carriers is yieldingly limited.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing wit nesses.

FRANKLIN A. FROMMANN.

Witnesses:

ALBERT SoHErBLn, M. M. BOYLE.

Copies of this patent insy be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

